“LIFE IS TOO SHORT TO WASTE TIME HATING ANYONE.”

“LIFE IS TOO SHORT TO WASTE TIME HATING ANYONE.”

 

You can hate things, you can hate a situation or circumstance, but hating people makes no sense. Think about it, has your hatred ever done anything to the person at whom your hate was directed? Do you honestly think that they go to bed at night sweating the fact that you hate them? Do you really think that they go through the day fretting the bitterness you have towards them? Most likely they haven’t lost too many seconds of sleep over it, nor have they worried about it. You… you however have obsessed over it, you have wrestled through the night on ways to get back at them, and you have let the hate become a deep seated bitterness. How is that working out for you?

We all have a finite amount of time on this sphere of water and terra firma. We have a limited number of waking hours on which to spend this life. In that time, when we hate, we reduce the amount of time we can experience joy, happiness, family, and friends. This hatred will become bitter, then it turns to poison and the only one it poisons is the one who carries it. Does that make sense to anyone? I didn’t think so.

Here is what that poison does to us…

It clutters the thought process – it makes you cynical and causes you to mistrust even the most innocent of actions. It blinds your thinking. From there it -

It clouds your decision making – you start making decisions that are in some way a path to getting revenge. Revenge becomes a meal that you constantly chew on, then it knots up in your stomach (ever heard of an ulcer?)

Hatred controls your attitude and actions – it will even contort your face – the bible calls it your “countenance” - that means people will see the anger on you, and angry people aren’t very pretty to look at...

For the Follower of Christ it constricts the Holy Spirit’s working – if you allow anger to fester it WILL lead to sin and stop the Holy Spirit from working in your life, it grieves the Holy Spirit because hatred and the fruit of the Spirit don’t grow on the same tree.

And for the Follower of Christ, your hatred confuses a watching world – you speak about the love of Christ, the grace, the mercy and forgiveness of God – only to turn around and let your hatred get the best of you, then you say something or do something that is anything but the love of Christ, grace, mercy and forgiveness – and people outside question not just you – but they will question this God you say you follow!

 Let’s read Matthew 5:38-46 and you tell me if this sounds like hate

“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.  If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat also. Whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you.

 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?”

Wait… What? But that doesn’t make much earthly sense? EXACTLY! It’s not earthly sense, its other earthly sense. Its heaven sense.

Or how about what the Bible speaks of in Romans 12:18

“If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.”

Have you ever seen hatred and peace hold hands?

I will tell you though that the Bible does have a good recipe for revenge…

In Romans 12:20

 “But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.”

Ok, maybe that’s not for revenge. But can you see the picture? The person you should hate is shown kindness instead. It will absolutely bug the snot out of them. The “burning coals” – that’s guilt or a shame because they know what they have done deserves some hatred or revenge and yet you don’t.  And now they are the ones going to bed tossing and turning trying to figure out why you were so nice, they are the ones wrestling with your kindness all day. You on the other hand, sleep peacefully.

Your life is way too short for you to carry around hatred. It robs you of peace, it robs you of joy. On second thought it doesn’t rob you. No, just the opposite, you give away the peace and joy when you have to stop to pick up and carry the hatred because it weighs so much you can’t carry them together.

It takes all your strength to carry it and it takes NO strength to let it go!

So let me recommend something to you – PUT IT DOWN!

There now, doesn’t that feel much better?

One Small Step

“When in doubt, just take the next small step.”

It is my belief that far too many people are frozen in space and time. They would rather continue their walk in a circular rut. Maybe its out of fear. Maybe they have been burnt in the past. Maybe they had a parent that was such a “helicopter parent” that now as an adult they are hesitant to strike out, to risk.

It becomes easier to just stay in the same rut…so much that one day the rut becomes so deep they couldn’t step out of it if they wanted to.

But in doing so, that person misses an immense portion of real life. They run the risk of missing things, great things, which God has prepared for them.

I both pity and hurt for those people.

Because I firmly believe that Jesus meant what He said in John 10:10 -

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”

The thief He speaks of is satan. I know what you’re asking… “But you said it is fear that keeps people from taking the next step..” and I did. But it is satan that has you believing that you can’t, that it’s too risky, that people will ridicule you, that you might lose everything. He is the father of lies. He comes to steal life from you, he comes to kill your desire to live to Christ and wants to destroy your joy, he wants to cheat you out of a deeper relationship and fellowship with Christ .  BUT -  Not Jesus. He came to give you life and give it more abundantly!  He came that even when you doubt where this “thing” is going you know you can trust Him and that you can text that next step.

I think of people like Peter – in Matthew 14:22-33 (go read the story) it is clear that everyone in the boat is terrified, it is clear that even Peter cried out in fear. He asks Jesus that IF it’s you command me and I will come. I find it interesting that Jesus could have said - “Yes, Peter, It is I come.” But Jesus just said – “come.”  Was it implied that it was Him? Maybe. But He didn’t answer Peter’s question did He (besides, He had already told them once, what more did he need)?

Peter still had to have some faith that it really was Him, I mean hey, it could have been an imposter. But Peter took that one small step out of the boat. The others frozen in fear, maybe disbelief, maybe awe.

But Peter… Peter took that next small step even when there may have been some doubt still in his mind.  Besides the obvious, that Jesus can do anything and cause it so other can too… Peter was able the rest of his life to say that he had walked on water. All because he took that first small step to Jesus.

I imagine that once the storm was over, once they were back on terra firma, that Peter was a little dazed, amazed, and exhilarated, and I wouldn’t be surprised to find out he teased his fellow crew members for a while.

Time doesn’t allow discussing the likes of Abraham taking the first step on the walk to sacrifice his son Isaac or Nehemiah taking that step into a king’s throne room not only to ask to be set free but for money and resources…or Gideon experiencing the amazing stunning victory with only 300 soldiers over thousands… the list goes on and on.

Then it strikes me, why aren’t Followers of Christ experiencing God’s Hand at work in abundant ways? Our doubt vetos our faith, and it freezes us in place.

So we just continue on the same path, going in circles, never realizing the promise of abundant life. We read of great stories of God working in ordinary people in extraordinary ways all throughout the Bible. But that is all we do, read.

I would change the very statement - “When in doubt, just take the next small step.”

 - to read - “When in doubt, trust Jesus and just take the next small step.” 

We have to stop being afraid, we have to stop the fear from freezing our next step. That’s what Jesus told the frightened fishermen - Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.” Peter’s first step came from the little bit of courage he could muster, it came from him trusting Jesus when He had simply said “come,” it came in the act of putting his fear aside…and he took it. And what happened was something he could have never in his life imagined, a part from Jesus.

Let me ask you.

What do you feel God is leading you to do? What “boat” is He asking you to get out of? What place is He asking you to leave or to go to? What risk is He leading you to take?

Is doubt or fear keeping you from taking that next small step? Does it seem too risky, foolish? I want to encourage you… do you doubt a little bit right now…well -

“When in doubt, trust Jesus and just take the next small step.”